A Learner in 2012 is Like...

Today’s leaner, in ESL, other L2 learning, and virtually all categories might be compared a helicopter pilot in a war zone. Of course, though sometimes painful, no one’s life should be at risk while enduring the learning process. Likewise, you probably would probably hope to never hear the word ‘learning’ if you were experiencing such a helicopter ride.

Nevertheless, the short-term chaos and ever-changing situation that a pilot would face while trying to complete his objective is probably a good metaphor for today’s learner in their long-term objective of gaining mastery over a certain field. Though the learning process never truly ends, if one were to examine this comparison in terms of reaching a certain stage in learning development as the objective, the analogy becomes more clear.

Basing this comparison on George Siemens’ theory of Connectivism (Siemens, 2005) as a model of the learning process, we can illustrate this idea more clearly. While connectivism would state that “a diversity of opinions” is the dominant factor over the learning and knowledge acquisition process, certainly in such a situation as navigating a chopper in a hostile environment would require not only trained skill and instincts, but also intellectual decision making. The best course of action for a pilot may vary considerably from one pilot to another based on his own ideas, what his instructors have trained him to do in the past, and what his superiors might be telling him at the moment. Likewise, learner must consider all that he has already been taught, his or her own experiences in the past and compare this with the task at hand.

The second principal explains that connecting “specialized nodes” and other information sources is how the learning process works. Imagine our pilot at the helm, taking advice and intelligence from other pilots, sources on the ground, his own visual field, and the array of dials and displays in his cockpit: fuel gauges, radar, infrared displays, and so forth. He must ‘connect the dots’, compiling and processing all of these inputs and formulate a course of action. A learner in today’s world also has an array of educational tools and resources, and must successfully make similar connections to acquire knowledge in a useful and efficient manner. Similarly, this same description can be used to draw comparisons to principal three, that learning may come from within “non-human appliances.” While a pilot will rely non-human tools like dials, meters, radars, etc. to complete his objective, a learner may use an assortment of technology tools in his or her journey, including internet tools like blogs, social networking, software applications and so on.

Building on those points, we can examine Siemens’ discussion in his video The Network Is the Learning. Here he says “Adding a node to a network increases the entire network.” Let’s say our pilot is suddenly given one more tool, or node, to add to his intelligence network, such as a location of an enemy threat via a source on the ground behind enemy lines. This piece of information, or knowledge, does not just stand on its own. It will change how every other piece of information is viewed and what steps will be taken. It increases the value of all the other ‘nodes’. Likewise, when a learner is given a new tool, or a node, his learning potential can increase ten-fold from that one new node. For example, an L2 learner may come across a new blog on ESL. Within this blog, the learner may find countless new learning strategies, links to additional sites previously un-encountered, and start networking with other learners and teachers. This provides new nodes, but increases the value of the old ones by providing new ways to use them, thus exponentially strengthening the network.

Principal four states that the capacity to know more if of greater significance than what one already knows. Of course a learner will continuously, and probably forever, draw on previous knowledge, it maybe even very old indeed. But much knowledge becomes obsolete very quickly. To stay relevant, the learner must be capable of further acquisition. Our pilot, too, will need to use what he has learned over the entire course of his training, but he also can’t go ‘stale’ , so to speak. His situation is changing every second and he must adapt and be able react properly in new, unseen circumstances.  Principals six through eight are similar to one another, seemingly echoing this point. This further helps us illustrate this metaphor.

If you’ve decided you would now rather like to become a fighter pilot and seek that path of adventure, good luck. But if you are still interested in learning more about theories of learning (that would also apply to ESL) and the effects of technology on the learning process, you can read the entirety of Siemens’ article on connectivism at via this link. The video on connectivism referenced above can be seen here: The Network Is the Learning.